April 19 – LD 16, Day 4: The Reign of Sin Destroyed

Romans 6:6,7 - “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.”

The victory of the cross is not something that we wait to enjoy until we die. Through the power of Jesus Christ both our life and our death are totally changed.

The benefit for our living is that already now the old man is crucified, dead and buried with Christ. We will later deal with the old man in more depth in Lord’s Day 33. The old man is that nature we inherited from Adam which is given over to sin. He still exerts a lot of pressure on us, however. Daily we do battle against that old man. But, Christ gives us something to rejoice in. That old man is in principle crucified and buried with Christ. Already now we have the victory. How is that evident?

Although we give in to the old man and walk according to our sinful desires, there is no pleasure because we experience shame and guilt. God drives us to repent and turn from our sins. Rather than walking in them and enjoying them, we flee from them.

The corrupt inclinations of the flesh no longer rule us. No longer does the devil sit on the saddle of our lives controlling us and driving us where he pleases. He has been cast off. Christ now sits on the throne of our lives. He rules and governs us. Through the power of His Spirit we do battle against the power of sin. Our daily question is this: “What is it Lord, that Thou wilt have me to do?”